by Eleanore Lin
From lawmakers to the mayor of Taipei, we know that trying to get fit and slim down is no longer the privilege of young people. On the contrary, people of all ages and both sexes are joining in this prolonged fight against fat. An irresistible fashion trend, perhaps, but with so many ways supposedly to lose weight, how can we decide which one is worth trying? Before you start anything new, let me remind you of some facts that might spare your vain attempts: Relying entirely on dieting inevitably leads to failure. When we take in fewer calories, our metabolism spontaneously slows down in order to save energy for our bodies. That is, our bodies consume fewer calories, which makes our weight loss even harder. Even if we do lose some weight simply by eating less, chances are that one-forth of what we got rid of is actually muscle, not fat. As soon as we resume regular diets, we are very likely to gain more weight than we lost because of the slow metabolism. Thus, exercise is essential for losing fat since it’s the only way to speed up our metabolism. Taking in different nutrients separately does not help weight loss. There is hearsay information suggesting that people who want to lose weight shouldn’t eat fat and carbohydrate at the same time. When eating a hamburger, for example, the beef and the bread should be eaten separately. However, a study published in International Journal of Obesity points out that what counts in weight loss is the total calories assimilated, not eating food separately. High protein/low carbohydrate diets not only are useless for weight loss but can be hazardous to our health. Research conducted by American Dietetic Association shows that eating only protein causes many side effects, such as an increase in cholesterol, dysfunction of kidneys, and running off of calcium. The researchers hold that if we don’t eat starch or carbohydrates at all, our bodies would be forced to burn fat or protein for metabolizing, which accounts for the weight loss in the primary stage. If we keep this kind of pure protein diet over a long period of time, however, we would make our bodies be in an extremely weary state and gradually lose our appetite. Suffering from the natural reactions of their bodies, ordinary people by degrees return to regular diets and regain weight. Those who sustain such a diet end up in hospital due to the breakdown of their health. A very-low-fat diet may compromise immune function. A University of Buffalo study has shown that people who severely limit the amount of fat in their diets may be suppressing their immune system and increasing their susceptibility to infections and inflammation. Dietary fat indeed affects our health. The researchers indicated that neither too much nor too little dietary fat is good. Only with proper dietary fat can our immune system effectively defend our health. Since we all want both fitness and good health, we really have to be cautious in the pursuit of fitness. To be a successful “loser,” never risking one’s health should always be the first principle of conduct. #Volume 8 Issue 1 a
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The Taida Student Journal has been active since 1995 with an ever-changing roster of student journalists at NTU. Click the above link to read about the authors Archives
May 2024
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